trinacriabob

@Robert Hall Look at you ... 30,000 posts ... I just noticed! - - - - - I have to get outside - to stores, restaurants, coffee, and the great outdoors. In indoor spaces for the general public, I obviously mask up. In the great outdoors, I do not do so where people are keeping their distance from each other.

Not trying to be self serving here, but I hope the Quebecois, and all of Canada, control it and get over it so that I and others who want to visit can get to Quebec and Canada again. I am not there yet. Even before this became a big deal, I have washed my hands a lot and always used hand sanitizer wherever it was offered at the entries of places of business. However, it is more difficult than people think to keep one's hands away from their faces. It's reflexive. I'm sorry to hear that ... wicked sick, as in flu-like symptoms magnified ... or other/additional symptoms that were also very hard on them?

It's somewhat of a relief that not many people are talking about coronavirus these days ... - - - - - @A Horse With No Name In terms of random one hit wonder-ness, I immediately think of this one. It might be the "king" of one hit wonders of its era ... by King Harvest, no less ...

Yep, this YouTuber has this interesting collection of videos he does. He's really knowledgeable. The A-380 photographs well from some angles ... and poorly from others. I've seen some of this guy's videos, made unique by his Australian accent. As for the person who always speaks at the beginning of his videos (most likely in the tower), I need a translator.

Pan Am, TWA, United, and American all had 747s going daily from LAX to New York back in the day. I don't know if that meant fewer flights per day. There was also 747 service from LAX to Chicago, Honolulu, and Miami. It was National that flew to Miami and the airline was absorbed by Pan Am, so they got the route. Some Honolulu bound 747s marketed that they had lounges for coach/economy in the back. Continental - absorbed by United - was one such airline. First class definitely had a lounge, and it was upstairs. They then turned to using the hump for additional seating and "suites" that produced revenue. This National 747 was the -100 series, the first ones. You can see this one is named Linda (near the second level's 3 windows). They had one named Patricia. You can see their Florida themed sunburst logo on the tail. Their marketing went along the lines of "fly Linda" or "fly Patricia." Back then, it would have been considered different and humorous. Today, some snively, uptight individual would come forth and say it's sexist and be offended.

I was having this discussion with the curator of a small aviation museum. I loved the Airbus 340. The 330 is basically the same fuselage, with 2-4-2 economy inside, but has 2 larger engines. In addition to saving fuel, he said that there are much fewer work hours spent on engine maintenance for the 2 engine Airbus 330. They are the norm for many European carriers for transatlantic flights. I am just thankful to have grown up "alongside" the Boeing 747, and being able to ride my bike to LAX, alone or with friends, to look at them from the observation tower or view areas surrounding the airport.

Beautiful. I love the Hudson River Valley. And driving along I-87 between Montreal and NYC. I stopped in Plattsburgh, where SUNY is located just south of the Canadian border, and got a fantastic gyro meal. And, a long time ago, I met up with "razoredge" in Albany, his general area, and that was a hoot. If you ever fly into Newark or LaGuardia airports and you diagonally go over the Hudson River Valley, it's amazing that so much pristine, wooded land is that close to NYC. The same would apply to the eastern ~2/3 of Long Island. The middle of it is very rural once you go way east.

That's a comment about me. I'm talking about comments about current conditions and situations. It seems people who get upset about stereotyping are usually defensive or ridiculously progressive. Stereotypes exist because people observe them. Companies and organizations need to stereotype so they can focus on where to put their marketing dollars. Automakers know exactly who their demographic is, which is stereotyping. And it's all validated by social psychology and marketing research studies. Before I embark on travel, I read travel books. These bohemian a.f. travel writers stereotype away, telling you how the people will be, the dynamics to expect, scams and typical prey, and all that. And, having traveled on 4 continents, it was mostly all true. Get out of Amish country more. The Boeing thing has been disturbing. So has their stock price (BA). The stock price kept rocketing upward despite previous problems with 787 batteries and then the lengthy 737 Max grounding. I think reality finally caught up with the whole situation. The Europeans seem to be more loyal to Airbus, for obvious reasons. Airbus has shelved the entire 380 program. For as grandiose as it was/is, the program was not very long lived. But their volume for short-range and mid-range aircraft is healthy, it seems. I only like their Airbus 340, which has lost favor because of its fuel consumption. OTOH, I like every other Boeing airplane more than the Airbus equivalent. Once flew on one of these Iberia Airbus 340-600s (^) from Chicago-O'Hare to Madrid and it's an incredible machine.

Transplant

Exactly. Not helped much by celebrities who are more accessible through the media and pitch their points of view, which stupid people buy, yet these celebrities are in no way qualified to opine professionally on much of anything other than their occupations. And, as usual, I get a downvote on my comment ... which would be fine if it was accompanied by a cogent argument. It never is. Instead, it's a lob and run.

Cool photo. AZ was relatively late in being admitted to the Union ... 1912, IIRC. L.A. also has streets where palm trees are laid out on the "lawn strips," as they are called out West, so they would resemble a colonnade. I obviously like the word colonnade. - - - - - This would definitely be contrary to democracy. It could be useful if they tested people for their critical thinking skills and then "weighed" votes accordingly. Just a random thought that has gone through my head when I see things that make me SMH.

Thank you! I had forgotten that nickname ... a "Dustbuster." Perfect. (Probably one of those things that didn't resonate with GM's marketing department)

I don't see many of these anymore. Most are in the car graveyard in the sky somewhere. Or, hopefully, recycled. This is an Olds Silhouette minivan from GM's first whack at minivans ... the ones with the long snout. In reviews I've read of these, it said driving one seemed like you were driving them from the back seat! I'm guessing early '90s. It's in incredible condition - the body, the hardware, an original paint color, and it's badged to have a 3800, probably a Series I. No wonder it has been around for so long. Of the GM minivans, I'd give the nod to the Olds Silhouette, followed by the Pontiac Trans Sport, and then the Chevy Venture/Lumina.

What I meant is that it hearkens to a British detective taking a respite from his sleuthing.

The trim on the Century helps ... somewhat. They put so many of these cars by the beach in California or on mountain roads up above Los Angeles and rely on that a little bit for appeal. As for the LeSabre, I didn't like how these looked with the very angular lines of the greenhouse. Ditto for the Catalina. It was a little nicer as an 88. When the Riviera shared the platform with the LeSabre, the Riviera made a much better impression with how they handled the greenhouse. However, it's obvious that the visibility in this car was a strong point. That's because there isn't any. I like the mid '70s ('74, I believe) burgundy Camaro and the fact that Jimmy John's sponsored one of the vintage cars. I can almost always use a Jimmy John's sandwich.

U.K. ... or U.S.A.?

Last but not least to close out October - not in sequential order - spotted on October 10 in the Twin Cities (and look at that, there's even a sliver of a Subaru in this photo, which are a dime a dozen in these parts): So what is this? German iron wearing an American badge indicating "Premium American Motorcars" ... ... and, with massive Mall of America behind my shoulders, just who's is this? All in good fun!

By the way, Happy Halloween, C&G folks. Stay safe and healthy ... and HAVE FUN!

I read that 5 minutes ago. It almost seems surreal ... Sean Connery was a larger than life persona. He appears to have gone peacefully and may he R.I.P. It has been an incredible thing to grow up with and mature alongside the timeless franchise of so many great 007 films.

We all probably love them to gawk at them, like we would at a Maverick or a Pacer. But to own one? That's the litmus test.

Interesting ... I didn't tune into pre-'70s cars to have known this. I'm guessing Olds and Buick probably ran an equivalent color at the same time or were all the divisions doing their own thing?

The baby powder blue was indeed a '70s GM color, in both '75 and '78. I do not consider light metallic blue to be baby blue. It has to be an enamel paint, and not a metallic paint, to be baby blue. I know most of us here know that but some people mix up the nomenclature. '75 Cutlass Supreme coupe - factory color - yes, a baby blue '78 Cutlass Salon sedan (above) - factory color, available in all models - yes, a baby blue What were they thinking? What was the slick Salon coupe became the Calais coupe (so these could be Salons) before becoming the Salon coupe again later in the '80s. This styling mistake lasted 2 years and they were cleaned up as nice Sevillesque notchbacks for '80 through the end of the platform. '84 Cutlass Supreme (Brougham) coupe - light metallic blue, NOT a baby blue ... mine was identical to this, I helped my parents pick it out, got it years later, and will never forget this vehicle. Basically, it was GM Americana at its finest, in my mind, even if the horsepower wasn't there. Any other baby blue on a GM, except maybe also in '79, would be a custom paint job.

Right, the leisure and discretionary sectors have probably been the hardest hit. People need that stuff to keep their heads screwed on straight. It's weird to be inside an airplane or public transit with so many seats blocked off. The airlines have to fly planes that are, more or less, mostly full to be profitable. I have a feeling that, if normalcy comes, there will be a huge surge in travel and it might be difficult to find airplane seats and hotel rooms at times. Pent up demand can work in strange ways.

Meant to say: Driving down a major street ... * sleep in my eyes ... and on the brain *

Minding down a major street on October 25, minding my own business, and I see this: You bet I was going to pull over to this exotic car dealer that I normally wouldn't pull over to. I was wondering if this is a custom paint. And what the person's motivation for ordering or choosing this car might be. I went to the Bentley website. It's a legitimate color: Jetstream II. This is one pompous car. You can build one on the website, but it won't give you a price. All of the verbiage, such as "colour," is in English for the posh folks. The experience mentally sent me running to the Dodge dealer down the street.